Twenty Third Sunday of the year – September 05, 2021
Readings: Isaiah 35:4-7; James 2:1-5; Mark 7:31-37
One day, as usual, an orphan, a little girl, stood at the
street corner begging for food, money or whatever she could get. Now, this girl
was wearing very tattered clothes, was dirty and quite disheveled. A well-to-do
young man passed that corner without giving the girl a second look. But, when
he returned to his expensive home, he's happy and comfortable family, and his
well-laden dinner table, his thoughts returned to the young orphan. He became
very angry with God for allowing such conditions to exist. He reproached God,
saying, how you can let this happen? Why
don’t you do something to help this girl?
Then he heard God in the depths of his being responding by saying I did.
I created you.
We must notice here in today’s gospel the similarities and
differences between the internal and external sense. The external senses of seeing and hearing is
compared to the internal faculty of knowing and obeying the message of Christ.
It is the key to understanding Mark’s use of many of the healing miracles. Mark
wrote to a community of believers under persecution. In such a situation
speaking up for Christ was a very dangerous thing. It could cost you your life.
The story of the deaf-mute in today’s gospel is apparently aimed at those
members of his community who could not bear witness to Jesus because they would
not hear his word. Because they are deaf to the words of Jesus, that is why
they have a speech impediment in speaking about him. There is, therefore, a
parallel between the deaf-mute in today’s gospel and Jesus’ disciples. The man
can neither hear nor speak properly. The disciples cannot understand the
message of Jesus, and this constitutes an impediment in their proclamation.
They, too, need healing.
Let us understand the Gospel well. Why did Jesus take the
deaf man away from the crowd? And why did he have to go into such a detailed
and graphic healing process when he could simply have said a word and the man
would be all right? I think that in these details of the story, Mark is saying
something to his readers.
By taking the deaf man far from the madding crowd in order
to heal him, Mark is probably saying to them that in order to be healed of
their deafness to the word of God they needed to distance themselves from the
masses around them, since the healing encounter with Jesus happens in the
private intimacy of one’s heart and that of their small Christian community.
Remember that Christians were then a very small minority and their meetings
took place not in big churches but in the private homes of members.
As we read the Gospel, we need to understand that to hear the Word of God is to carry it out. The word hearing implies, listening, understanding, making the message one's own, and living it out in word and action. Although Jesus tried to restrain the man in today's Gospel, the cured man and all those around proclaimed what had happened to the deaf and dumb man everywhere they went. Really the man just had to do it. After all, he was now hearing and he was now able to share with others what he had heard and experienced. If we were really excited about the Good News of Jesus Christ, if we were really excited about the experience of having the Christian vision of life, we would have to do exactly the same.
it is my responsibility to bring the gospel alive in me. Let us pray that we hear the Word of God in our daily prayers and in the Eucharist and proclaim it to all through our life.
(You are most welcome to add your thoughts and reflections
in the comment section below)
Happy Sunday
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